Vice-President Finance & Operations
Frank Laezza is the Vice-President, Finance & Operations, for the University of British Columbia. He is responsible for leading the VPFO team of over 1400 individuals in the core financial, facilities, and safety functions of the university across both the Vancouver and Okanagan campuses.
Reporting directly to the President and Vice-Chancellor, Frank serves as a key member of UBC’s executive leadership team. He represents the VPFO in working with diverse constituencies across the university, as well as with external partners, to support and amplify UBC’s academic mission through the stewardship and continuous improvement of the university’s physical and financial assets.
As part of his role, he serves as a member of UBC’s Board of Governors, and oversees the university’s relationships with both UBC Investment Management, which manages the university’s endowment and staff pension plan, and UBC Properties Trust, which develops and manages real estate assets for the long-term benefit of the university community.
Frank is a strong believer in connected leadership, bringing a focus to collaboration and honest, two-way dialogue that enables him to build meaningful and productive relationships within his team as well as with external partners. He began his career with UBC in March 2023 after serving in leadership roles at a suite of Australia’s post-secondary institutions, including Murdoch University, Technical and Further Education State Vocational College (NSW), the University of Technology in Sydney, and the University of New South Wales. He holds a degree in Business/Commerce from the University of Technology Sydney, and an MBA from the University of Wollongong.
Updates from the VP
Welcoming Frank Laezza, our new VP Finance & Operations
We are pleased to share the appointment of Frank Laezza as UBC’s new Vice-President, Finance and Operations. Mr. Laezza will be starting in his new role here in the VPFO early in the spring of 2023.
Improving our workplace together
UBC is committed to advancing Equity, Inclusion and Diversity (EDI) through our Inclusion Action Plan, and by working together, moving our ideas into actions. Our next step is that each of you take the time to complete the mandatory EDI training courses, and review the resources available on our VPFO website’s EDI section.
VPFO teams coming together to support the UBC community under heat warning
Last week a heat warning was issued for Metro Vancouver and the cooling systems in several buildings on the UBC Vancouver Point Grey campus simply could not handle these extreme conditions. Huge kudos to our VPFO teams' teamwork and dedication in ensuring the university community's safety as high temperatures soared across BC.
Continuing as one VPFO under Karamjeet Heer and John Metras’ leadership
Starting June 1, Karamjeet Heer will begin serving as the Interim Vice-President, Finance, and John Metras will become the Interim Vice-President, Operations following the departure of Peter Smailes, former Vice-President, Finance and Operations.
May 26 VPFO Town Hall Presentation and Slides
In this VPFO town hall, we reviewed the leadership transition plan, looked back on our accomplishments, and learned about our strategic plan together as one portfolio. The town hall recording and presentation slides are now available.